ParappaXSunny: Courtship Commencement
by AquaRock
Summary: How ParappaXSunny was born. This is not a oneshot, by the way. I'll continue this later NOTE: This is set after Parappa 2 and before the start of Infamy
1. Chapter 1

All that could be heard was a cricket noise in the night and Parappa's labored breathing. He lay in his bed, clad in his pink plaid nightclothes. It was eleven-thirty at night, and yet, he was having difficulty sleeping. The one thing that was on his mind was Sunny Funny, her cherubic face and visually-pleasing figure plaguing his thoughts. He had known her for about ten years now, and from day one, he started having feelings of affection towards her.

Of course, he didn't do anything too big to express his love towards Sunny yet, with his live shows with King Kong Mushi being possible exceptions. He didn't want to rush anything in a potential relationship with her. He had many an opportunity to proclaim his love toward her one on one, but he felt doubtful about if they would be successful. During the last decade, he has had his share of mistakes, shortcomings and even doubts of him having any chances with Sunny. And yet, he kept a positive outlook on her and a potential future with her. He seemed to do that with an innumerable amount of aspects.

_"Well, I know one thing. I may only have one shot to win Sunny's heart, one way or another. And if I'm going to take this opportunity, then I'll need to do it the next chance I get. I do believe that Sunny is having a music album release party and invited the whole gang on Friday. But, I want to do this privately and in real life. I don't want to do that 'will you go out with me via text' bullcrap. Sunny is much more deserving than that. So, it's official. I will ask her out tomorrow."_

Simultaneously, he felt so nervous about doing this, and thought, _"Why didn't I ask her out earlier? We all graduated four months ago, and none of us decided to go to a college immediately. To my knowledge, nobody was planning on going to college anytime soon, so I can't use that excuse. Here we are living it up here in Parappa Town, all starting our music careers on the right foot. Sunny is the newest member of the musical niche, but nonetheless, she has begun. Her voice is wonderful, like audible silk that caresses my eardrums and cuddles with my mind. I'd listen to her voice all day if I could. I believe that her career will run smoothly. _

Then, he started to remember all the things that happened in the past involving his hopeful other half. He remembered the first game he was in, where the entire plot revolved around her. He learned martial arts, arts that would help him in The Infamy in the near future no less, learned how to drive, sold stuff in a shop, baked her a cake, and rapped his heart out with King Kong Mushi in a live performance with Sunny there. Then, there was the second game, where he experimented with de-noodlizers, signed up for the military, saved her from a psychotic-seeming hairdresser, defended the town against a noodle-crazy dictator, and rapped his heart out again for the love of his life. After two games of service for her, and the rest of Parappa Town, the rapdog noticed that Sunny became less and less serious personality-wise, which was possibly initially caused by her father serving in the military. She seemed to let go and have a little more fun with everyone whenever they were doing whatever. Whenever she talked to Parappa, whether she was alone with him or if friends were within earshot, she played with her petals in casualness. She laughed more when she was with him. She kept the usual cordial look in her eyes as she kept eye contact with him at all times when he spoke. All of these were changes present after the events in the second game. He hoped that with all he had done, it would at least give the impression that Parappa cared very much about her, and he yearned for reciprocated emotions towards him.

_"Okay, Parappa. Don't let the stress get to your head. You have a couple of hours to practice what to say. And, it's Sunny! There's no way I could pass up an opportunity like this! I'll text her to meet me at the park tomorrow and show her what I do."_

As Parappa made his resolution to ask Sunny out, he turned around on his bed and lay on his other side, jittering with enthusiasm and delight.

. . .

Parappa woke up to a song on the radio at eight that morning. It was Beyonce's Crazy In Love, of all songs. He sprang from his bed and did a little dance number in rhythm with the song. Then, he took his smartphone and opened up his texting app. _Wait, I want to call her this time. Her voice is something I need this morning. _So, he selected her name in his contacts and pressed the call button.

"Hello?" Sunny's friendly voice sounded.

"Hey Sunny! After waking up on this beautiful Wednesday morning, I had the idea of possibly meeting you in the park, and I wanted to see if you'd like to participate in a trivial pursuit with yours truly."

Sunny laughed at his newfound precocious vernacular. "Uh, sure, that's fine. I was only going to practice my songs for the release party, but I guess I have a little time to have some fun. How does nine sound?"

"That sounds great! I hope to see you there," Parappa replied. They ended the call and both parties got ready for their meeting.

. . .

Parappa drove to the park and entered the recreational site. He found Sunny standing around the wooden fence entrance, wearing not a dress this time, but instead, a white T-shirt and short shorts. For the first time in a while, she exposed her fairly plump thighs and a balanced upper body figure, with a very little bit of tummy and a modestly sized bust. Sunny never wore make up, and for the better, in Parappa's opinion. He was a firm believer in natural beauty. It was in the middle of the summer, so of course, she'd be wearing very warm clothes. Parappa was wearing his usual suit: orange beanie, sky blue shirt, baggy navy blue pants and red "M" shoes. _This is it, _he thought.

He walked to the entrance to meet Sunny. In the morning sun, Sunny's petals looked ten times as radiant than usual. Parappa was unable to breathe for two seconds.

Sunny looked at him and smiled. "Hey, Parappa!" He shook himself out of verbal stasis and responded, "Hello, Sunny."

"So, where should we go to hang out? I didn't bring anything, so..."

"You brought yourself, that was the only thing I could ask for today," Parappa acknowledged, attempting a smile. Sunny chuckled. The rapdog laughed with her. "Well, let's just go to that bench over there. It's in the shade, and it's a place to sit down."

"Okay."

They walked over to a bench between two trees and sat down, Sunny sitting so close to the canine that their legs were touching slightly. As soon as Parappa noticed this, he blushed a little. Sunny observed the blood rushing to his face and chuckled again. _Is she doing this intentionally?_ the rapdog thought. _She somehow goes from dresses to shirt and short shorts...I know it's in the middle of summer, but, even this seems a bit too casual for Sunny in a regular situation...Does she know that I want to date her?_

"I want to talk to you about something. Ever since we both started high school, I've, uh, discovered my passion toward your character. It was during our high school careers that I did many things just to see you satisfied, impressed, but most of all, _smiling._ I thought that I was just being foolish at the beginning, but after the second game, I realize that if I felt it was really foolish, I wouldn't have tried this hard to please you. At the end of both games, I made you smile, and when I witnessed this, I felt more accomplished than I ever felt."

Sunny's eyebrows raised a little. "Really? You went through all that nonsense just to make me smile? And in two games, no less? That's means a lot," Sunny said. She was sitting at Parappa's left. Parappa sat at the right arm of the bench. Sunny was looking directly at Parappa's head, while he tilted his head a little to the left horizontally so that her face was in his peripherals. He didn't want to fully show his blushing face to his crush.

"Yeah, it was all for you. Then, at the end of the second game, you told me that you liked me for who I was, not solely for what I did for you. You liked me for my personality, and I like you for yours, along with other reasons. And I endeavored to one-up Joe Chin in something,_anything,_ but he seemed to best me in virtually everything. He ran faster, could lift more weight, play sports better than I could, was richer than me, and seemed more articulate than me. Then I realized, I still had the passion of rapping, so I followed that. At first, I wasn't all that good at it. To be honest, PJ and I have an unreleased album made before the first game named I Scream, and it was the type of terrible that was laughable to both of us. But, nonetheless, I practiced my rapping day and night. Then, the two games came around. My rapping ability increased substantially because of the rap masters in the city. Finally, when time went on, I realized that it was true."

"What's true?" Sunny inquired, her voice showing curiosity and slight hopefulness. She leaned closer to Parappa. Parappa finally turned and looked her directly in the eye.

"That my efforts would never be in vain. I can't imagine anybody else that I'd want to date. Sunny," Parappa turned his upper body towards Sunny. She mirrored him, and both of their hearts raced. In moments like these, Parappa would become tongue-tied. But, this day was different. "Will you go out with me?"

Sunny gasped and nearly fainted. But, she still kept her composure. Instead of passing out in delight, she put her hand on the back of Parappa's. She slowly moved it up his arm until she reached his shoulder.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting for you to say that, Parappa..." she began, beaming. Her petals radiated once again.

"So, yes?" the rapdog asked.

Sunny couldn't find the right thing to answer verbally, so she gave the canine a big embrace, wrapping her arms around his shoulder/neck area. Parappa jumped at the suddenness of Sunny hugging him, but he sure wouldn't reject it. He wrapped his arms around her sides. After about twenty seconds, Sunny moved away from him a bit, their chests not touching, but their hands still on each other.

"There are some things I wanted to tell you as well. It's a safe bet that I've had a crush on you for about the same amount of time as you did for me. But, the reason why I didn't say anything was that of my dad. He was very protective of my future, and didn't want me dating anyone until I got a stable job and my own house and everything. That was the rule ever since I first showed signs of liking guys. Now, I love my father and all, but sometimes he could get a bit too anxious in certain aspects of my life. And then came high school, where the hormones and peer pressure came in. Everybody, it seemed, found a lover in those four years. Every time homecoming came along, everyone was prepared for that, with a dress or a suit and a significant other. It was always my dream to go out to a homecoming or something like that with somebody that I felt that I could trust, could relate to, could _act the way I wanted _around them."

"You mean you couldn't have done that before?"

"Well, yes and no. See, my father emphasized formality and gender roles in the family. I, like my mom, was supposed to wear dresses every day, no matter what the weather, and I was expected to act what he viewed was ladylike. That's why, in the first game, when those two bullies were harassing me and Katy, I acted all so submissive, because I was afraid of what might happen if I didn't follow Dad's directives. I was expected to act completely polite to everyone I meet, and heaven knows that's hard with a Joe Chin always trying to get in your panties. To Dad, women weren't supposed to speak their minds that much, being quiet most of the time. I'm not saying that it's bad to be like that, but that just wasn't me. And, to be honest, I have been thinking about you more and more recently after the last game. I knew how charming and funny and friendly you were, and those were the sort of things I looked for in a guy. And last night, you were in my thoughts constantly. As I got ready to meet you this morning, I finally explained to my dad about what I really wanted to do and who I really was. I turned eighteen a few months ago, and I've been working a few odd jobs and did a few paid singing parts with MilkCan since before then, so I feel that I can make some more decisions for myself. He said that he could respect the fact that I wasn't exactly the girly girl he wanted me to be."

"Wow, it seems a bit harsh to have your dad force that on you initially. But at least he saw it from your perspective and accepted it," Parappa empathized.

"Yeah...I felt sure that I wanted to date you for a few years now, but I didn't know if you were really interested in me. I mean, in the games, I just thought that you were only trying to help me out like you would with anybody else in the group. But now I know."

"And knowing is half the battle," Parappa blurted.

"G.I. JOE!" a male bull said while jogging, finding the two lovers on the bench beside a sidewalk. Both Parappa and Sunny laughed at the perfection of the dialogue.

"But yeah, I had a feeling that you were the one. And now, I've received confirmation of that."

"So, we're boyfriend and girlfriend now?" he asked.

"I guess you could say that. But maybe this will speak more volumes," Sunny responded before leaning her body more toward Parappa. Just then, he felt her lips pressed against his in what felt like a long-awaited and exalted osculation. It was their first ever kiss on the lips with anyone, but to each other, they did everything right. Sunny put her hands on Parappa's neck and gently caressed the sides of it, while Parappa's hands were stroking Sunny's upper back. They puckered and brought back their lips and repeated at the same time, and their eyes closing made them focus on the feeling of the kiss.

After about a ten-second kiss, their mouths moved away from each other. They noticed that the other person was blushing like mad. They weren't embarrassed by what the other person thought anymore, but this moment right here, this time together with their crush, made the blood rush to their heads. It was an amazing thing happening between them.

"So, where are we headed for our first date?" Sunny asked, her hand on Parappa's chest.

"Uh, I don't know. But, I came here by my car, so maybe we could go cruising around town, if you'd like," Parappa suggested.

"Anywhere with you is a great place to be...boyfriend," Sunny answered, smiling. Parappa chuckled a little, causing Sunny to laugh with him. They laughed as they made their way to Parappa's car. For both of them, this was the beginning of a great day in their lives. Parappa overcame the fear of potential rejection and replaced that feeling of fear with a feeling of euphoria. Sunny felt nice to know that her father was going to accept her having a boyfriend and living more of an adult life. She would still live by her morals and standards and wouldn't want to move too fast in their relationship.

The canine and the flower looked at each other lovingly. Parappa extended his right hand and held her hand as they drove away from the park.


	2. Chapter 2

That day was quite an eventful day for the two newfound lovers. They toured the city, caught the new Jet Baby movie that came out on that day, conveniently, and took a romantic walk in the park they were just in. They would have walked longer, if it didn't start to rain.

It didn't just rain. It was POURING when they walked. They were on a bridge that went over a pond, talking about how both of them first got into music. They leaned on a railing, facing each other, and held hands when Sunny first felt a raindrop. A look of alarm appeared on her face. Parappa then asked, "What is it?" before feeling a raindrop as well. Then, it felt like a river harbored itself in the clouds when much rain cascaded in the town. Both Parappa and Sunny yelped as they dashed toward his car for shelter from the rain.

The raindrops led a full frontal assault on Parappa's windshield. It was difficult to see anything out of it. However, Parappa made silent thanks to the inventor of windshield wipers as he activated them and drove away.

"Man, you were booking to this car when we were in the park," Parappa commented.

"Of course. I hate the rain. You were booking too!" Sunny responded.

"Yeah, because, you know what they say about the smell of wet dog...But I thought that flowers liked the rain. How else would they get fed, other than sunlight?"

Sunny gave Parappa a playful "are you kidding me" with her eyes and gave a good-natured slap on his shoulder. Both of them chuckled.

"So, where should we go next?" Parappa requested.

"Well, it's raining, so that cuts off any outdoor activities. But, really, we've been to enough other places. Is it all right if I stayed a while at your place?"

Parappa's eyes bucked at the thought of that. It was at home where the two would be alone, doing whatever, without anybody else knowing..._Check yourself, Parappa. This relationship started today, and I've planned on an actual relationship, not a hook-up. So, nothing too risque...not today anyway._

"That's fine with me, even though I've no idea what to do in my crib. But anything we do is made better with you," Parappa complimented. Sunny grinned.

They pulled up to Parappa's one-story house. It was a simple house, having four bedrooms, two bathrooms and a fairly-sized living room. The outside was constructed with bricks and black tiles on the ceiling. Two windows were visible in the front side of the building. The white garage door was on the right of the front entrance.

Before they exited the car, Parappa offered Sunny his beanie. "This might protect your pate from the pouring precipitation. Perhaps," he said. Sunny giggled at the alliteration. Parappa's prediction proved plausible, as the beanie protected Sunny's dome from the rain quite effectively. Then, lightning struck nearby, followed by thunder booming across the sky. Parappa's fur raised at the sound of the startling stimulus.

They went in the house, Parappa quickly closing the door behind him. He didn't want the sound of thunder amplified by an ajar door. After wiping their feet on the rug beside the door, they immediately moved into the living room, turning on the lights around them. Sunny sat down in a loveseat and moved her hands to the vacant cushion beside her and patted it. Parappa soon followed.

"Let's see what's on TV," Sunny said, handing the remote to Parappa. He took it and pressed the power button. He browsed the insipid soap operas, cheesy sitcoms and platitudinous documentaries until he found something that seemed urgent. A news report on the local weather was on. It was Action News Weather, presented by Manuel Lorraine.

"...cold front moving into Anime County and Sony County, while heavy precipitation is expected for the next few hours in major cities in and around Roddington, PlayStationopolis and Parappa Town. Flood watches have been placed in Roddington and Playstationopolis, with nothing for Parappa Town but high winds estimated at twenty to thirty miles an hour, which will be occurring for the upcoming-"

_CRACK! BOOM!_

All of the lights and the TV cut out, leaving them in an almost total darkness. It was 7:42 when either of them last checked the time on the television, so there was still much daylight to be had left in the day. The sunlight permeating the overhead clouds also gave slight illumination inside his house.

Parappa didn't realize this, but he had his arms held tightly around Sunny's body as soon as the thunder sounded. He also shuddered in the event. Sunny noticed this and blushed. "Wow, you're feeling affectionate all of a sudden."

When she said this, he then knew what he was doing. He blushed as well. "Sorry..." he said sheepishly.

Sunny giggled again. "It's fine. Are you afraid of the dark? Thunder? Both?" she asked.

"I never could get over thunder, not after, uh, what happened..."

Sunny became concerned. "What happened?"

"Well, you already know I wasn't always in central Parappa Town all my life. I already told everybody about my roots in North Parappa Town, the nasty, felonious place that it was. And, then, we moved. That's the gist of everything I told the other guys, but I didn't give everyone the full picture as to why my dad left. Of course, one of the reasons is that you were in danger of being shot for no reason in the north side, but there was something more than that." Parappa closed his eyes as he remembered what had happened in that fateful day in the ghetto. The sight of the event occurring in his mind almost made him cry. He did, however, sniffle a few times.

Sunny wrapped her arms around Parappa in sympathy, even though she had no idea what was the matter. Regardless, she knew that it was a cause of sadness and misery toward her lover.

Parappa opened his eyes, almost moist, to look in Sunny's eyes. "While we were living in the north side, my dad was accused of drug dealing and murder. The cops were about to take him away, when my mother insisted that they take her instead. Her reason for this was that Dad was the inventor of the family, and is still inventing things today, so she wanted him to be alive so that he could make the world better with his inventions. So, the cops actually did take her instead, and soon after, Dad moved from the north side to here. I didn't realize this until this last school year, but a few months after she was captured, she was...*sniffle*...executed for false charges. For the last ten years, however, Dad told me that he divorced with Mom and I couldn't visit her because she was constantly working and on business trips. Soon, I found out that Mom was killed when I randomly searched through Dad's room to get something for recording. I asked him about it and he spilled the beans. And the reason why he lied about it to me was that...*sniffle*...he knew how much I loved Mom and how much she loved me, that he wasn't ready to tell me the truth about what happened to her..." Parappa now felt a tear run down his face. _Points for overbearing masculinity,_ he thought.

Sunny became teary-eyed as well. She never thought that someone so optimistic, so chipper, so sprightly the majority of a time would have such a legit reason to be sad instead. And the fact that his mom was really innocent when she was killed and insisted that she become incarcerated instead of her husband was even more of a tear-jerker.

"I'm sorry this happened, Parappa. I never could think that this occurred...And you've never really shown any signs that something like this took place..." she said tearfully. She tenderly rocked Parappa to cheer him up, in the same style that a mother would do to her child.

"Well, look at me now. I'm practically sniveling just by thinking about it. And you know I'm not one to cry in front of all my friends no matter what the circumstance. I'm supposed to be the guy who people look to in order to cheer them up. I guess I would have failed at that if I went into much detail of the event..."

Sunny just remembered two things. One, she was still wearing Parappa's beanie. Two, the original question that brought this subject up was why Parappa was still scared of thunder.

_CLAP!_

Parappa clutched Sunny tighter momentarily when another thunderclap sounded. This time, Sunny reciprocated and held the rapdog closer to her. Against his better judgment, Parappa further described what happened when his mom was taken away.

"It was about one in the morning, me peacefully asleep in my almost fallen-apart bed. It was storming, thunder being heard every few seconds. Earlier that night, my mom was telling me not to worry about the thunder, because back then, I had a phobia of thunder as well, and she told me that she would be there for me if I ever felt afraid. It was THAT. SAME. NIGHT. I fell asleep with her sitting beside me, not minding the thunder as much. I had gotten used to the sound of gunshots in my neighborhood that when another one sounded that night, I didn't pay too much attention. But, I heard the sound of an irate voice, multiple gunshots, the door knocking loud and thunder all within five seconds. This combination was enough to wake me up in the morning. As they were taking Mom away, one of the cops looked directly at me, and his face was lit up by nearby lightning, and of course, thunder sounded. This left a scar in my mind that I couldn't shake out. And, what was worse was that Mom said that she would always be there for me whenever I felt afraid. And then, she was gone for good...*sniffle* I still miss her..."

Parappa wasn't full-on sobbing, but instead sniffling periodically while his face was almost covered in tears. Sunny's tears fell in a slower rate than Parappa's, but she could almost feel the exact degree of sadness that this event caused him. She continued to gently rock him back in forth, causing the rapdog to lay his head on her shoulder. She then mildly caressed Parappa's side in an attempt of consolation. "I will be here for you, Parappa, this I swear," she acknowledged delicately.

The power never came back on for the rest of the evening, so this left them alone with each other without any further distractions. When both of them got tired that night, they just decided to sleep on the couch, sitting with one another and cuddling their lover. Sunny fell asleep to the sound of rain falling and the transformation of Parappa's sniffling into steady, controlled breathing, giving her a warm feeling inside her chest.


	3. Chapter 3

Outside, the air was filled with moisture from the previous night's rain, humidity harboring in the highways of Parappa Town. Birds tweeted salutations of sunlight, sounding swiftly to such sleepy sentient sirs and ma'ams.

Parappa woke up to a very pleasant scene. He found his head rested against Sunny's shoulder from the previous evening. He had his arms wrapped around her torso, and her arms around his torso, snuggling sleepily in the past storm. The warmth of her body pressed against his was most pleasing to him. He nuzzled her face a little.

"Uh? Where am I?" Sunny asked sleepily. The nuzzling caused her to wake up. After looking around, she remembered that she stayed the night at Parappa's house. She blinked a little to help herself gain full consciousness.

"You're in my residence, don't you remember?" Parappa said with another nuzzle. Sunny smiled as she felt Parappa's furry face brush up against hers.

"Oh yeah. And, I'm really sorry about your mom," Sunny empathized again.

"It's all right." Parappa stretched from his slumber and stood up in front of her. "I guess now I should take you home?"

"Yeah, I feel icky in these clothes. I need to bathe as soon as possible."

After a quick change of clothes, Parappa drove Sunny to her house and dropped her off. On this day, they relaxed and accompanied their friends, Sunny with MilkCan at Katy's house, and Parappa with PJ and Matt at the park's basketball court. Neither Sunny nor Parappa could have helped telling their friends about their new relationship. Both groups acted surprised

"Well, I don't want to brag or anything, but, it all started two nights ago. I knew that if I wanted to date her, the time was now. I was getting all these mixed feelings all of a sudden, some of them telling me not to date her, but I shook those feelings out. The next morning, I asked her if she would meet me in the park, and she said yes. I walked into that park that morning, feeling as confident as ever," Parappa boasted to PJ and Matt.

"...I could tell his nerves were racked when he saw me. I saw it in his face and could tell it in his voice. Don't get me wrong, I was just as nervous as he was, but I somehow can conceal my anxiety better than most people. So, when we finally sat down on the bench, I saw him blush when I sat down very close to him. And, keep in mind that, like today, I wasn't wearing a dress, but a regular T-shirt and short shorts. With me showing this much skin, he nearly had a nervous breakdown, it seemed like! But, he regained his composure and we talked," Sunny said to MilkCan.

"...I started throwing baritone, she threw back soprano, and we found out a lot about each other. She seemed very interested in everything I had to say, and her statements were very diverting. Then, the conversation got a little mushy, so I'll spare you that, and then that's when I told her about my feelings and I asked her out..."

"...I was waiting for this for quite a while, but was afraid of doing anything because I would have been judged by my dad, and you know how I'd feel about that. My heart almost came out of my chest when I hugged him tightly. When our chests were touching, our heartbeats were synchronized. I just wanted to stay in that position forever, holding him in my arms and having our chests drumming together in rhythm. I wondered if he felt the goosebumps all over me..."

"...And then the fun part finally came. After she accepted going on a date with me, she told me she then knew that I was 'the one.' I asked her if we were boyfriend and girlfriend. 'I guess you could say that,' she said, then she locked eyes with me..."

"...I put my hands on his shoulders..."

"...pulled me closer to her..."

"...closed my eyes..."

"...and we kissed for the first time ever. I somehow knew that was her first time kissing anybody, as she did for me," Parappa concluded.

"Uh, correction, Parappa. Remember the second game? Second stage?" PJ replied. Parappa's eyes widened as he suddenly remembered when he accidentally kissed his best friend when he watched Romantic Love for the first time. At the moment, he didn't think anything of it. He was just very involved in the TV show's instructions. That didn't make him gay for kissing his best friend, right? Well, obviously he wasn't gay, since he now had a girlfriend, and that wasn't merely to cover up potential homosexuality. Maybe Parappa was bisexual all this time and he didn't even know it.

"Shhh...I thought we stopped talking about that," Parappa answered. Matt looked confused. "What happened in the second game?"

"Uh, nothing," Parappa quickly said, his eyes shifting. Matt's eyebrow raised while PJ squinted.

. . .

"Somebody give me barf bag, this is nauseating," Ma-San joked.

"Wow, sounds like you two have really hit it off! Did you go on a date that night?" Katy said.

"Of course! We went to see Jet Baby and went for a walk in the park until it started raining. We ran to his car and I went to his house, and-" Sunny was about to mention Parappa talking about his past with her in secret, but then she remembered Parappa's words: _"Well, look at me now. I'm practically sniveling just by thinking about it. And you know I'm not one to cry in front of all my friends no matter what the circumstance. I'm supposed to be the guy who people look to in order to cheer them up. I guess I would have failed at that if I went into much detail of the event..." _It was an ego-booster for her, since she was informed information that Parappa wouldn't have told anybody else, not even his best friend PJ. He trusted her so much that he was willing to shed tears in front of her. "...I spent the night at his place."

"Oh, you spent the night with Parappa? Guys, I think that Sunny has finally become a woman! Wait," Ma-San suddenly thought, "he DID use protection, right?"

Sunny then knew what Ma-San thought and quickly denied it. "Relax, we never hooked up. I don't think we'll get THAT serious unless if we get married. But that seems a long time away, so," she shrugged.

"Anyway, are we all set for tomorrow night? It's your first performance, Sunny, so you're probably getting more nervous as time goes on," Katy assumed.

"Not exactly. These songs are part of me now, all of them I could sing in my sleep. You got the instrumentals down?"

"Oh, honey, we got that down pat. This will be an awesome night for us!" Sunny and Katy high-fived each other.

. . .

Friday morning came, and everybody in the gang felt euphoric for the performance held tonight. Sunny's first album was named "Sunny Side Up," an affectionate named invented by Katy. It had a grand total of twelve songs, which was a humble amount for a debut album. The performance was set up at Club Fun and would begin at 8:00. After that, there was a party celebrating the release of the album.

Before all of this, though, PJ and Parappa joined Sunny and MilkCan to help them practice. Katy was right; MilkCan had the instrumentals down pat. Her preferred genre was R&B/hip hop, slightly inspired by Parappa's rapping success. The group performed the songs perfectly during their practice. Quickly, they went through nearly all of the songs on the album, with around a thousand CD's produced so far. Most of the songs had an upbeat feel to them, promoting positive messages about following dreams and spreading love, etc. But, the last song on the album, named "Come a Long Way," had more of a neo soul feel to it. This song's lyrical content was originally based on Sunny's fantasy about Parappa wanting to court with her. She used past experiences and emotions to write the lyrics. Now that those fantasies became reality, it was even more of a pleasure to sing the song.

In the middle of the song, Sunny said, "Stop the instrumentals." Reluctantly, MilkCan did, provoking a question from Ma-San. "Why the heck did you have us stop? We were playing perfectly!"

"I know, but, I have an idea. This is a neo soul song, yes, but since this song was made with Parappa in mind, and now that we're dating, I think that Parappa should have a rap part in this song."

Parappa's eyes lit up when he heard this. He had no idea he would be featured in one of Sunny's songs so quickly. The gang all looked at him, awaiting his answer.

"Yeah, that might work! Parappa, see if you can bust some lyrics right now," Katy said before playing a chord and starting the beat of the song again. Parappa was surprised even more since he was asked to freestyle. Usually, he rapped with lyrics already written or, like in the games, used the teacher's lyrics and repeated them. But, he could still try this.

_Like birds of a feather, we flock together,_

_Let's rock together, wants to stop, yes, forever,_

_Just only really buiding this fate, teens forever,_

_Seasons change, you know you can't change the weather,_

_One by one, side by side we stand,_

_Forever in your arms, together in hands,_

_Life's like a rollercoaster ride: the second you're high,_

_Yeah, you really try, you get down with your pride..._

Everybody seemed impressed.

"Nice! Let's put that in the final product," Sunny said.

They finished practicing the song and became prepared for the night's performance. Still before it, though, Parappa had a question to ask his girlfriend. While everyone was relaxing in Katy's living room, Parappa motioned for her to meet with him privately in the kitchen. She eventually walked in and sat down in a seat near Parappa's. The two reached for the other person's hand and held it to start the conversation.

"So, you said that 'Come a Long Way' was made with me in mind?" Parappa beamed.

"Yes, it was. I started writing the lyrics by the end of senior year. I put a lot of different moments in our history together back then. Let's see, the first few lyrics are:

_It was cold that night_

_When you came into my troublesome life._

_And it seemed as though_

_everything's gonna be alright, for the moment._

I remember when I first met you. It was in the middle of winter, and you came across me during recess in elementary school. After school that day, we met at Chunky Burger when we both ordered kids' meals. I wanted to talk to you at that time, but my dad forbade it since he got one look at you and knew you were from the north side of town. Despite that, when I was much younger, I didn't think that anything bad could happen to any of us.

_Since then here and there,_

_My life's become like a roller coaster ride._

_Up and down, 'round and 'round,_

_Bad times and good times were on hand._

_We tried to live up to our feelings._

Just like any of us, I had good and bad times throughout my life. Some good times included going to dances and visiting friends' houses virtually every day. But, bad times were still present, especially in high school. Apparently, I caught the eye of many a male student in freshman year, and I would be publicly harassed by a bunch of them, almost every day, it seemed. Those two bullies that harassed me in the beginning of the first game were usually the leaders of my public embarrassment.

_But then soon, we overcame them all,_

_one by one, side by side we gave each other,_

_Love that's real, an everlasting one,_

_real love._

_We've come a, come a long way._

_After dark, you were sweet._

_So emotional, holding me in your warm arms._

_But the very next day, you were gone._

_Didn't care how I felt, I couldn't act the way I wanted._

That first paragraph was just my imagination taking over, about us eventually forgetting our fears and taking on our difficulties together as a couple, which might just turn into reality," Sunny smiled. "And that second paragraph was based more on emotion. It would feel like you really liked me one day, but the next, you didn't find me special anymore. I really liked you since I first saw you, so whenever I felt like this, I'd sometimes soak my pillow with tears. However, more recently, I moved on from the waterworks stage and looked for another medium to convey my emotions, and that was music.

_It was cold that night_

_When you came into my troublesome life._

_Everything's alright,_

_Now that we have each other,_

_Together and forever._

I don't believe that I have to really further explain that, do I?" Sunny finished with a chuckle. Parappa laughed as well. He had no idea that the song would have so much meaning to it. It wasn't like many other songs being released just talking about casual sexual encounters at a nightclub, or having enough money for it to be stacked to the ceiling, or even giving your phone number to a random stranger you see on the street.

"That's awesome! I think you'll do well in this concert. You just gotta believe!" Parappa couldn't help using one of his catchphrases at the moment. But, it evoked a grin from Sunny.

. . .

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, with her debut in live concerts, I present Sunny Funny!" King Kong Mushi announced at Club Fun. The entire place was packed with citizens, about as packed as one of Parappa's concerts. Everybody came, from the masters of all three games, like Chop Chop Master Onion, Fussenpepper and the the Guru Ant (still bigger than his normal size).

Parappa sat at a lone table, enjoying the show and eating the refreshments provided. He waited until the last song that would be performed to move, which was, of course, "Come a Long Way." Before the song started, King Kong Mushi gave an introduction: "If you thought any of the previous songs were hot, you ain't seen nothing yet! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the piece de resistance for tonight, give it up for the neo soul song, 'Come a Long Way!'"

The crowd cheered before the group began. Sunny was dressed in her signature dress again, since she was in a formal event.

_It was cold that night_

_When you came into my troublesome life._

_And it seemed as though_

_everything's gonna be alright, for the moment..._

_...after dark, you were sweet._

_So emotional, holding me in your warm arms._

_But the very next day, you were gone._

_Didn't care how I felt, I couldn't act the way I wanted._

What the crowd didn't know was that Parappa hid a microphone under the table and started speaking as Sunny vocalized without lyrics while the instruments were still playing:

_(Yeah, yeah yeah._

_Caress you in my arms._

_But we're always fighting, y'all._

_Yeah, yeah._

_Constant struggle,_

_Meaningless fights,_

_Irritation.)_

Everybody heard this and recognized it as Parappa's voice. The crowd found him and showed faces of amazement. They had no idea that he would be performing yet. He walked up to the stage, ignoring negative comments from Joe Chin and Captain Fussenpepper sitting together as he made his trip. He continued speaking from the dome as Sunny and MilkCan kept vocalizing to build up the rap part.

_(Yeah, yeah, side to side._

_Yeah.)_

_You know we have been together. (We've been together, y'all.)_

_(Side we gave each other.) (Yeah, yeah.)_

_We have come a long way. (Long way.)_

_(Long way, girl._

_Yeah, yeah.)_

_Everlasting love._

_Like birds of a feather, we flock together,_

_Let's rock together, wants to stop, yes, forever,_

_Just only really buiding this fate, teens forever,_

_Seasons change, you know you can't change the weather,_

_One by one, side by side we stand,_

_Forever in your arms, together in hands,_

_Life's like a rollercoaster ride: the second you're high,_

_Yeah, you really try, you get down with your pride..._

The crowd's faces lit up, as the rap part took them all completely by surprise. Parappa grinned as he saw the look of approval from the crowd and from Sunny. When Parappa finished his rap part on stage, Sunny faced him and held both of his hands and continued the rest of the song.

_It was cold that night_

_When you came into my troublesome life._

_Everything's alright,_

_Now that we have each other,_

_Together and forever._

When the song finished, Parappa and Sunny gave each other a look of admiration and slight seduction. The crowd went crazy, with a neo soul song by a brand new voice that was phenomenal, and it even featured one of the ten most famous performers in Parappa Town. And, not everybody there would admit it, but their one true pairing had been Sunny and Parappa. When it became apparent that Sunny was courting Parappa, the crowd went into a standing ovation.

"KISS! KISS! KISS! KISS!" the crowd chanted. It looked as though they would, since their faces were so close to each other. Parappa looked in the crowd, then back at Sunny.

"Should we?" he asked her. Sunny laughed and leaned in to hug and kiss him, nearly making Parappa fall and his back with her force. As if the crowd couldn't get any louder, the sound barrier nearly broke with the crowd's cheers with this public display of affection.

. . .

"Now, that was awesome! You should be in more concerts with performances like those, Sunny!" PJ praised. Everybody sat in Club Fun and enjoyed the refreshments served there during the album release party. Almost everybody ate a humble slice of pizza or one piece of cake at a time, while PJ at over half the cake in one sitting.

"Yeah, start writing more material ASAP, I can't wait to drum in some more songs," Ma-San added. Sunny smiled in the midst of all this praise. Like many artists, she didn't know that her pieces of art were THAT good. But, that's the thing about close friends. They will be some of the only people who will support you whether you sell two albums or two thousand albums.

"Thanks, guys! I appreciate your acclaim! I didn't think that so many people would come to my first performance, yet here we are," Sunny replied.

"And to think, even MORE people will be coming to future concerts involving you! I always knew that you had a lot of potential for music, Sunny! All I ask is that, can I be involved in more of your songs, and vice versa? That last song was pretty fun," Parappa asked. He was, of course, sitting beside his girlfriend, and he awaited her reply.

"Oh, you better believe it. If people loved the song so much with a small rap section, imagine how reception will be with more equally split verses for us!" Sunny exclaimed while she reached for Parappa's hand that lay on the table. She placed hers on the back of his hand, causing him to turn his over and hold hers, causing them both to blush.

"So, where shall we go from here, music-wise?" Katy asked. Since Sunny was now making music, there might be even more ambitious endeavors in music. The group could even mix three genres: rock, rap, and R&B, in the same song!

"I don't know. But, if we play our cards right, we'll be reaching for the stars. I doubt that we'll be involved with much crime or anything, right?" Parappa stated. The entire group laughed, completely unaware for the future that lay ahead of them.


End file.
